6/3/2024
Tom Berry Jr.
TBJ competes in The Big Deal, finishes as runner-up at Clay County Fair Speedway
Over the past week, Tom Berry Jr. has taken on stout Modified competition from Wisconsin to Iowa.
His busy slate began on Wednesday at Fountain City, Wisconsin’s Mississippi Thunder Speedway, where he was among 145 Modified drivers participating in The Big Deal. That night, Berry was fourth-quickest in his group qualifying session for the One Nation Under Modifieds (UNOM)-sanctioned show at the 1/3-mile track.
He competed in preliminary action on Thursday, and after a seventh-place finish in his heat race, rolled off fourth in the C-Main. He came home third to advance and start 23rd in the “B.” Despite moving forward in the race, Berry finished 16th, ending his night before the 30-lap, $5,000-to-win feature.
On Saturday, based on his qualifying points from the week, Berry found himself buried in the D-Feature to start the alphabet soup of races in advance of the finale. As a result, he elected to forego a chance at the 100-lap, $100,001-to-win A-Main.
Monday evening saw Berry move on to Spencer, Iowa, and Clay County Fair Speedway for a 25-car, $2,000-to-win IMCA Modified Summer Challenge Series event. Berry won his heat on the 3/8-mile oval and began the 30-lap A-Main from the pole. He led the feature until inside of 10 to go, having developed a vibration around the midway point. Still, he held on to finish in the second spot behind Tim Ward. Ethan Braaksma, Brandon Beckendorf and Joel Rust completed the top five.
Full results are here for The Big Deal and complete Clay County Fair Speedway results are at this link.
Article Credit: Tyler Carr Racing Photos image